Report No. PID8773 Project Name Eritrea-Cultural Assets Rehabilitation (@) Project Region Africa Regional Office Sector Non-Sector Specific Public Disclosure Authorized Project ID ERPE58724 Borrower(s) GOVERNMENT OF THE STATE OF ERITREA Implementing Agency Address Cultural Heritage Secretariat, Ministry of Finance P.O. Box 6513, Asmara, Eritrea Contact Person: Naigzy Gebremehdin Tel: 291-1-122059 Fax: 291-1-123691 Email:
[email protected] Public Disclosure Authorized Environment Category C Date PID Prepared January 3, 2001 Projected Appraisal Date November 14, 2000 Projected Board Date July 1, 2001 1. Country and Sector Background Eritrea is the site of some of the oldest human settlement in Africa. Though the beginning of recorded Eritrean history dates to the accounts of trade with its Red Sea ports from around the first century AD, relatively recent discoveries have shown that it has a rich prehistory as well. Early Christian influences date to around 400 AD, Islamic influences followed Public Disclosure Authorized several hundred years later, and these have had a profound impact on Eritrean culture and tradition. A rich civilization flourished around Adulis until the 5th century AD which was an amalgam of indigenous culture and external influences, notably from Southern Arabia. Massawa and the Dahlak islands were inhabited by Muslim communities from the early 10th century, and Turkish influences were entrenched, particularly on the coastal strip, by the 16th century. More recent Egyptian control was followed by Italian colonization, in the 1890s, and then by British administrative rule after-World War II. Federation with Ethiopia, and then Annexation, lasted another four decades until independence in 1993.Evidence of Eritrea's rich past is found not only in ancient monuments, cities, and prehistoric sites, but also in the work of traditional artisans who have long contributed to its material culture by producing leatherwork, jewelry, woodwork, and pottery.